I don't think Romer was advocating foreigners set up these zones. I think it's just that Romer is a foreigner in most the places he tries to implement his ideas.
The idea is good laws and low taxes make very wealthy cities. See also the free state project (http://freestateproject.org/) which is trying to make New Hampshire more economically free.
"In the kind of charter city he imagines, the governor would be appointed by Canada or some other rich nation, but the people who work there would come from poor countries."
The idea is good laws and low taxes make very wealthy cities. See also the free state project (http://freestateproject.org/) which is trying to make New Hampshire more economically free.